Machine for covering dress-stays



4 Sheets-Sheet 1.

(-NO Model.)

L. I, COOK & 0. CARTER. MACHINE FOR COVERING DRESS STAYS. No. 554,778.

Patented Feb. 18, 1896.

(No Model.) 4 Sheets'Sheet 2. L. I. COOK 813C. CARTER. MAOHINE FOR COVERING DRESS STAYS.

' No. 554,773. Patented Feb. 18, 1896.

(No Model.) 4 Sheets-Sheet 3.

L. I. 000K & 0. CARTER. MAQHINE- FOR COVERING DRESS STAYS.

N0.554,-773. PatentedPeb. 18,1896.

AN DREW BYGRAHAM. PHOTDLMQWASHIN GTONJIC (No Model.) 4 Sheets-Sheet 4.

L. I. 000K & 0. CARTER.

MACHINE FOR GOVERING DRESS STAYS.

No. 554,773. Patented Feb. 18, 1896.

. UNITED STATES" PATENT OFFICE.

LEWIS I. COOK AND CHAPEL CARTER, OF ANSONIA, CONNECTICUT.

MACHINE FOR COVERING DRESS-STAYS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 554,773, dated February 18, 1896.

Application filed July 26, 1895. Serial No. 557,288. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that we, LEWIS I. COOK and CHAPEL CARTER, citizens of the United States, residing in Ansonia, county of New Haven, and State of Connecticut, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Machines for Covering Dress-Stays, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to a machine for covering the blades or wires of dress-stays with fabric; and it is the object of the invention to provide a machine for the purpose described which shall be effective in operation and simple in construction.

WVith these objects in View the invention consistsv in the novel details of construction and operation hereinafter. described, and

more particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, and in which like letters and figures of reference indicate corresponding parts, Figure 1 is a diagrammatic perspective view illustrating the successive steps in the manufacture of a dress-stay.

to Fig. 1, which illustrates in perspective the operations of the machine. In this figure X represents a continuous blade or flat wire of steel, which is fed forward and at certain intervalssay at 00is severed transversely. As it is desirable that the ends of the blades shall be rounded the strip is preferably severed by means of a cutter or punch which punches out a piece so as to leave an intervening space and round off the adjacent ends of the strip. The successive blades y thus severed from the main strip are carried onto a strip of paper or other fabric 20, which travels at the same speeds as the blades, which are therefore laid upon the strip with their ends separated. The strip is pasted as it is carried toward the blades and after a blade has been put upon the strip first one edge is folded up and down and then the other is folded over and pasted so as to cover the successive separated blades in a continuous covering of fabric. As the blades and coverings travel forward they are severed along the lines o transversely midway between the separated ends of the blades, thereby forming the covered dressstays,each,as shown in Fig. 2, consisting of a blade of steel 3 preferably with rounded edges, tightly inclosed by a folded covering or fabric projecting at each end beyond the ends of the blade. The machine for effecting these operations has a base or platform WV upon suitable legs or supports, and a standard A, in which turn the adjustable bearings of two shafts 5 6, carrying at their ends that project beyond the standard two feeding rolls or wheels 7 8, preferably grooved to receive the steel strip X. Another standard C carries the bearings of two shafts 9 10, upon the ends of which are two wheels or rolls 12 13, the latter having a groove 14 and the former a rib 15 upon its periphery adapted to said groove, the groove being wide enough only to receive one of the blades with the strip of paper folded round it.

Forward of the Wheels 12 13 is a folder F to which the fabric strip w, preferably of paper, is fed over a guide 16, the folder being c011- structed to turn in and down upon the blade first one edge of the strip and then the other. The annular rib 15 presses the folded edges down upon the blade to cement them tightly thereto. From the wheels 12 13 the-covered strip passes along a suitable guide G, which if desired may be heated to dry the paste.

Between the feed-wheels 7 and 8 and the presser-wheels 12 and 13 is arranged the cutter, preferably in the form of a punch 17, entering a suitable die 18, both supported in a standard H upon the base. A second cutter in the form of a blade 20 moving into and out of an opening in the cutter-plate 21 is carried by a standard I supported by the base. The cutter or punch for the metallic strip or wire and the cutter for severing the covered strip between the ends of the blades are so arranged and actuated that they will travel with the metallic strip and the covered strip at the same speed as the blades and fabric travel, so that while the punching and severing of the strips are being effected there will be no buckling, bending or tension upon the strip. The punch and the cutter are also so arranged according to the length of the blades that the cutter will sever the fabric with absolute certainty midway between the ends of the blades.

As dress-stays are made of different lengths and as it is desirable in all machines to have a continuous rather than an interrupted feed we so actuate the parts and provide the machine with such means of adjustment that the speed of the speed-rolls may be changed in respect to the reciprocations of the punch, or the latter may be varied in respect to the movement of the rolls. To this end a preferable construction is to operate all of the rolls and the punch and the cutter from a single driving-shaft K, which is geared to the shafts of the rolls or wheels by means of interchangeable gearing, thereby varying the speed or extent of rotation of the wheels or rolls in respect to that of the shaft when required, and which also is provided with suitable cams for actuating the punch and cutter at each rotation of the shaft.

As shown, each of the wheel-shafts 6 10 has a beveled wheel 22 gearing with a beveled wheel 23 upon a counter-shaft 21 driven from the shaft K through the medium of three gears 25 26 27, the gears 25 and 27 being on the shafts K and 2f. The gear 26 is carried upon a lever L swinging about the shaft 24E and capable of being secured in different positions by a set-screw 28. This permits gears of different sizes to be substituted for the gear 26.

In order to carry the punch and cutter with the traveling strips they are caused to slide upon the base V, and to this end we prefer to connect both standards II I to a connecting-plate M, sliding in a dovetailed recess in the base TV, and to impart a reciprocating movement to the connecting-plate by any suitable means. As shown, the connectingplate is operated from a cam N upon the shaft K, through the medium of a lever T, pivoted to a bracket 30, bolted to the base, having a stud 31 extending into the groove of the cam and connected by a link 32 with the adjacent end of the connecting-plate M. The groove u of the cam at that portion where the movement is imparted to carry the standards H I forward is of such a pitch or angle as to impart the proper speed of movement to the plate M. As the degree of movement will vary in cutting-blades of different lengths (the shaft K turning slower when the lengths are longer) it is necessary to correspondingly vary the throw of the cam. To readily effect this we provide the cam with movable sections 35, connected detachably to the remaining portion of the cam-cylinder, each section 35 containing a section of the cam-groove of a different throw or pitch from that of the other sections. The sections 35 are secured in place by belts or in any other suitable manner, as shown in Fig. 4. The

changing of the sections varies the character of the groove, and consequently the speed of movement of the lever T and plate M during the movement of cutting. As the distances between the standards II I must be changed with any variation in the length of the stays we connect these standards adj ustably to the connecting-plate M. One means to this end consists in providing the plate M with dovetailed longitudinal grooves 39 to receive the heads of the connecting-bolts passing up from the said plate into or through the bases of the standards and provided with nuts by means of which the standards may be secured upon the plates after adjustment.

Each standard carries a lever 10, pivoted. between cars 41, and connected at the forward end to a slide 42, one of the slides carrying the punch and the other the cutter, the dies or blocks 18 21 being supported in brackets of the standards.

The end of each operatinglever i0 extends over the shaft K in proximity to an operating-cam 46, which is adapted to be adjusted longitudinally of the shaft K and secured by set-screws, (shown in dotted lines, Fig. (5,) the rotation of said shaft vibrating the levers 10 simultaneously. It is desirable that the downward movements of the punch and cutter should be quick and that the punch and cutter should then be lifted to their upper position, and to this end we provide each cam 16 with a sharp lug or point 47 that meets a corresponding lug or point 48 upon the lever. As shown, the lug or point 48 is upon a pin 49 fitting a socket in the lever and secured by a set-screw 50, which permits the pin to be removed for adjustment to compensate for wear of the contacting points.

In order to permit slight variations in the throw of the plate M for slight ad justments, we connect the link 32 to the lever T, so that the connecting-point may be moved slightly to and from the said lever. This may be done in different ways, but, as shown, the link is pivoted to a sleeve 51 sliding upon the end of the lever T and secured by a set-screw 52. To permit a proper adjustment of the other pivot of the link to prevent the link assumin g too great an angle, the link is connected to a block 54 adjustable transversely upon the plate M and secured by a set-screw 55.

The cams 46 are so arranged relative to the levers 40 that the ends of the levers will slide over the faces of the cams as the standards If I slide back and forth.

Different means may be employed for applying paste to the strip 10. \Ve prefer to make use of the paste-wheel 60, turning in a paste-box 61, and to carry the strip 11; beneath guide-bars 62 ovcr the top of the wheel. Against the edge of the wheel bears a scraper 63, carried by an arm 641, swinging on a suit able support and thrown toward the pastewheel by a spring 65. The paste-wheelis preferably driven positively by a train of gears Q, driven from a gear 66 upon the shaft 10.

lVhile we have described certain means for actuating the different parts of the above machine and for varying the time and relation of movements, it will be evident that other well-known mechanical equivalents may be substituted for those described without departing from the main features of our invention.

While we have referred to the cutter of the metallic strip as being in the form of a punch, it will be evident that cutters of different forms may be used, the strip being severed straight across in instances where other In cans are employed for separating the blades before inclosing them, and the features of our invention are adapted for use in this connection.

Without limiting ourselves to the precise construction and arrangement of parts shown and described, we claim as our invention- 1. The combination in a machine for covering the blades of dress-stays, of means for feeding a strip of metal, means for feeding a covering-strip and for folding the same aroundthe blade, a punch for cutting out portions of the metallic strip to leave spaces between the ends of successive blades, and a cutter and means for operating it to sever the folded covering-strip between the ends of the blades and means for moving the punch and cutter with the traveling strips, substantially as set forth.

2. The combination in a machine for covering dress-stays, of means for feeding, folding, and severing a covering-strip, means for feeding a continuous metallic strip to the covering-strip at the same speed as the latter is being fed, means for severing the metallic strip at intervals, devices for varying the speed at which the metallic strip and the covering-strip are fed relative to the action of the severing means, and mechanism for moving said severing means back and forth in the direction of movement of the metallic and covering strips, substantially as described.

3. The combination in a machine for covering dress-stays, of the feed-rolls, severing means for a metallic strip, means for severing a coveringstrip, and devices for moving the severing means of the metallic and covering strips in the direction of movement of said strips, substantially as described.

4. In a machine for making dress-stays, the combination of feed-rolls, folding devices, a cutter for a metallic strip, a cutter for the covering-strip, and means for carrying both cutters at intervals with the covering and metallic strips, and means for operating the cutters during such traveling movement, substantially as set forth.

5. The combination of the feed-rolls and folding devices, of two standards carrying two cutters, a connection between the said standards, means for adjusting the standards on said connection, and means for reciprocating said connection, substantially as set forth.

6. The combination with the standards carrying the two cutters in a dress-stay-making machine, of means for reciprocating the standards, levers carried by the standards connected to operate the cutters, and a shaft carrying cams over which the said levers extend, substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof we have signed our names to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

LEWIS I. COOK, CHAPEL CARTER. \Vitnesses:

H. O. SEELEY, F. S. ANDREWS. 

